Sunday Songs

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

Deep breath. Finally home and able to stop for a bit.

Worked out this morning on the treadmill and bike (too lazy to go to the ski machine in the basement.)

S2s, unloaded dishwasher, had breakfast, got off to church, prepared but a few minutes later than we'd like. Still got there with about 8 minutes to spare.

The way the minister jumped for joy when I arrived and rushed to give me a hug let me know something was wrong. She was dizzy again so handed me the service to lead and she just did the announcements, sermon and blessing. The anthem had already been changed so didn't need me, allowing me to stay in the pulpit for the service. No-one had signed up for Sunday School but I tossed that job to someone else and told them to put on a video. There's a teacher signed up until May 12 so I have some breathing space there.

Service went fine. Having a few minutes notice helped me change my 'head-space' and I got the right introductions to each piece of the service.

After church I allowed 20 minutes for coffee then gathered the Board. Our meeting took 70 minutes, not bad considering how full the agenda was.

Washed up a few dishes at the church (with the others) and then headed home. Dh had already gone home with someone else. He was ready to leave and we headed off for our traditional Sunday lunch (chili for me, bagel for him) and then shopping.

Our digital to analog TV signal converter died so we had to come up with a new solution for the Media Center computer. We bought a super-cheap tv that doubles as a monitor. I'll lose my pvr capability but that's ok since it saves us from having to buy a new media center computer (with a tuner in it that will take a digital signal.) This computer is 7 years old and very slow but with this new tv/monitor still does what we want (play our music, play dvds, display our photos, run Netflix, run a browser and tv.)

The other to-buy item was a phone and we ended up with a Cadillac at a Kia price by accident. They had mis-shelved a more expensive phone and then when I objected to the $205 price, they agreed to sell me the more expensive phone at the $60 price. Dh and I feel really guilty because we suspect that the mis-shelving was done by a customer since they had put a permanent display shelf blocking the shelf where the phone was (so they probably just put it back on the shelf where they could reach.) On the other hand, they offered and never suggested we take the cheaper phone (which was also mixed in with the expensive ones) so I suppose I should just be thankful since the Cadillac will be very nice to have.

I want to go for a nap now but will try and press on.

In the car, dh asked what our packing/dejunking goal would be for this week. I had suggested clothing but dh will be taking the old computer monitor and it doesn't fit on his desk as it is set up now, so we'll move the low hutch onto his desk for the monitor. That will be a major dejunking job and all the cubbies are filled with things. At the same time, we might remove one section of his desk to make it smaller (and more likely to fit into a smaller office in our new place.) Learning to live with less is our major focus for the next few years. So buying two things today felt odd!

[Lilac]

Dh's tada, the entire shower (walls, ceiling and floor) and the bathroom walls are all grouted and look great. The only tiling left is the floor. I think he is planning to install the heavy shower doors before he lays the floor tile. My right shoulder is killing me after running heavy buckets of water in and out of the house all afternoon.

Guess I better get supper started.

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

I'm going to walk over to my new tv and turn it on. This sounds ordinary but with the old computer, I used to have allow 5 - 7 minutes for it to boot up and then the software to open before I could tune in a channel.

Dh and I went out for dinner. Discussed the office furniture and have set very high goals for learning to work with less. Much, much, less.

[Harmony]

HaHa, booksaver, roastbeast! Gotta love the Grin ch!

Hi Everybody. Nice to be back. Anybody miss me? Well ooookkkkkay then.

Seriously, our computer just froze up Sat. morning and after a couple hours I just gave up and told DH we needed to take it in. Got it back this afternoon. She said there was some sort of power thing going on. Said she put a new power supply in and the computer fried it. Huh. Maybe. Then she put a used one in and it worked. So back home all hooked up again, it appeared to be all frozen up again... but fooling around with it I've noticed the mouse itself is sluggish. I have to left-click a bit slower and harder and if I do that everything works just fine. So what was really wrong? who knows. Do mouses (mice?) do this? DH wants to switch it out.

Car is still in the shop. DH has been back and forth 3 times. He changed the timing chain while he had the cover off also... I'm lost without my car, I really need it back.

Church today was nice but we had communion so there was a couple times of work. Noone else was around after the last service out in the sanctuary so I gathered up all the disposable communion cups ( which is a lot of bending at each chair as I go along and there's a lot of chairs) and I was just exhausted when that was done.

I'm still working on a bunch of paperwork. I need to make a couple calls about that.

So, I think tonight is an early one. See ya tomorrow.

[Elizabeth]

Hi everyone! The much delayed Titanic exhibit with DD11 got delayed again. The ceiling lady came! That worked ok because DD's friends wanted to get together with her and they entertained themselves today. Which gave me a chance to FINISH RE-TARRING THE ROOF!!! Finally. There is still roof work to do with silicone but I ran out of silicone so that will be another time. Progress has been made on the roof and the ceiling. Unfortunately, just before DD left, her K indle stopped working (batteries likely) and she threw a major tantrum. Aren't the terrible twos supposed to end long before ten? We did make church too.

In some less good news, my arm has been hurting for months. It will get better and I think all is well, then it gets aggravated again. I have naively kept thinking if I just gave it enough time, it would get better. This morning, I noticed swelling on my elbow, looks like a little fatty pad, but it doesn't hurt there. I think this means that I need to get off my franny and haul it to an MD. It won't be tomorrow because the ceiling lady is coming again, but I think I will call. Squeezing the silicone applicator did not do me any good either, but I noticed the swelling before I got on the roof.

[Emptynester]

Oh! Harmony - I know about doing communion with a short staff. We are supposed to have 3 people work on a Sunday. One comes in early to get communion set up and the tables for fellowship. One comes in later to help with coffee and snackies. One comes in time for church but stays after to clean up.

Well, guess what the late one came in early and, since I had things done, her DH got his nose twisted (cleaned that one up) and they left before church even started. So I was there from 8 am to 1:30 and did set up and clean up.

I will call her on Wednesday and tell her she is on late duty as the other gal and I have to work the blood drive here in the park. If she don't like it she can lump it.

Came home and slept until time to go to ice cream at the clubhouse. It was really small after the Wood carvers and Bead Week crowds.

Tomorrow DH goes to the hematologist so send good thoughts our way that they find out what is causing his anemia.

[Harriet]

Hoping both Elizabeth and Mr. Emptynester hear ordinary and helpful news from doctors.

Yes, Harmony, I noticed you had been absent but thought maybe you were just super busy. Sorry about the technical difficulties.

Glad you handled technical difficulties, too, Kathryn.

Feel better, Lilac.

[Harmony]

Oh, Elizabeth, I hope the elbow thing doesn't turn out to be anything major and something little will ease the discomfort.

MT that is a long time to work. We have a different system. There are other people in charge of our cafe coffee and the courtyard coffee. The Deaconesses are in charge of communion. We have 3 services about 800 people...and they put the trays together Sat. afternoon (usually just 2 of them). Between the 1st and 2nd services there's usually enough made up to just change out the trays. Between the 2nd and 3rd we have to empty the partially full ones and make full trays to stack up in the sanctuary. And we wash and dry the extras and put them in flannel sleeves in the cabinet. After the 3rd service everything left over is thrown out and the rest of the trays wiped, dried and packed away in flannel.

Between 2nd and after 3rd the church is cleaned up. That's what I did after the 3rd. I wiped trays between the 2nd & 3rd. Ok, that's the long version. It's a lot of work and we share our space with the singers who took over our room...

At least we don't wash the cups any more. We use the disposable plastic ones.

There's always a bunch of miscellaneous to do too, like move the big heavy wood table from the altar back into our room...

I don't mind, really. I knew this was part of the job when I agreed to serve.

LOL, Harriet, I was just joking about anybody missing me! I've been sorta coming and going randomly recently anyway. Sorry your days have been extra busy / stressful. What would our families ever do without us?

[lucylee]

Harmony! I missed you! But I've been so sporadic lately, I didn't know if it was me or you. Sometimes my mouse gets sluggish, like you described. I did switch mice once, and it seemed to help. I always feel like I am just one click away from a computer meltdown, anyway, b/c we are so helpless when it comes to technology around here, and dh has never been satisfied w/this new computer we have now. New since... hmmm... last summer, maybe? I've forgotten now. But it is sooo much trouble to switch. And now, w/Windows 8... oh my... I just REALLY dread the day when this one dies on us.

Well. It has been another Sunday. Church... dgs came home with us, stayed till around 3:00... we all napped some, but not too much... then dmil's, CVS, Wmart, my parents' house, supper... and now... it is bedtime and I never got papers graded this weekend. I am severely lacking in self-discipline.

Guess I should go to bed and re-boot tomorrow.